New-York tribune., 1887-12-11
now AMERICA FEEDS ENGLAND
A PREDICTION FOR OUR FUTURE.

PREDICTION FOR OUR FUTURE
From The saturday RerieW
The new number of The Journal of the Royal
Years, Changes in our Foreign Meat supplies" which
During the past twenty years the population OF tho
United King lom has increased about SIX millions.
In other words we have added TO our numbers pop
uiatOn larger considerably than the whole popu a'i0n
OF Ireland or about one and half times the population
OF scotland Further, the wealth of the United King
dom has greatly increased and with the increase ot
wealth there has been decided advance I'm the standard
the article, estimates that the consumption Of meat
per head Of the population has increased nearly 10
per cent. There ha- thus been an increase In our
numbers of about oneinh and very considerable In.
crease at the same time in the con,lrrg power OF
the increased population and yet Is striking fact
that the home production Of meat has remained almost
stationary. Major Cragics estimate Is that IN 1867
the production was aout 2G.000.00O cwts., and now
II IS only 2GGG00o0 cwts. There i thus an Increase
Of barely 100000 cwts, or slightly more than IL
per cent.
For every five persons living in the United King
dom twenty years ago there now Fix. and the six
better of than the five were then. and consume
from alroad r. viii appear from the figures now
given, the whole Of the mcat CONSUMED by
him. and the other Eve have practically also ob aimed
from abroad The consumption in excess Of what 1t was
clearly if we compare The imports with the population.
Had tho whole Of the imports Of meat. and living
animals reduced 10 meat. been dlNldfd eqhil,,y
have given each ind viduA IL pound- I'm the year;
II the same distribution were TO lie made now. each
individual would have nearly % IA pounds in Tho
year In spite, therefore. of vat increase In tho
popu'atlon the rate per head Of the population of
three and a half imc, II inquire little further.
we find that the greater part Of the Increase has heen
I'm what the Americans call hog products thar j..
the meat Of the pig It. various forms-bacon. pork,
ham. etc Last the total imports Of pig meat
every kind more than half that Is. ofhe imports were
Of the flesh Of thc pig Practically we derive from
ppcHt pPrs a. and '" a. msh naturally be supposed It
from the United states that we derive most OF our sos
raise enables their TO feed pigs cheaply that they
practically heating orr farmers In their own
market and they have been aided by the reduci On
Of the Of carriage. to which We referred moro
particularly lat week Twenty years ago he eoo ovGrase
now fhey AVERAGE a5i2oo toms They have hccn n
$4,000 t1nsa vriv largo Increase lilewiSc but CON.
and fhc tnnorts Of mutton have risen nom I5.ioO
tons 10 $1,000 tors. The mutton inporis. VIII 10
much roro when pared with the prduc's II
the pig. This is remarkable when we cal 10 NINA
IL IS accounted for by the fact that the American
stock Of shccp T. small our iGp9r: Gpc, nCr' or nom;
ever appears incapable Of Increasing IT, exports:
while Australasia and South America have TO confno
thcu~clvc, very lrgcly 10 frozen mutton IN ths
case Of beet however I'm the Of bacon pork and
I-ncd Statcs. American herd. have increased cnor-
mousy: III" rr.d Of thc cattle has zen ,.sry very
markedly improved and their Weld In meat Is larGcr
than tn Continental yield whereas twenty years
onr or:n supply was AL nom ., ,ro re bc Inrci
state The final result IS that the great ncrase in
and i'm bcrf and the Increase has been mainly IN Tie
imports from thr IN ted states. Ju-t a the Intrh
states supply Us with the greater part of onr wheat.
50 thcv supply Us also with the greater part of our
foreign imports Of meat
Perhaps tho most inrrc-tnG part of Major Craisies
paper T. that I'm which he examines the chances nt
rs with meat, Roughly II may he said that his c3n-
illusions a. To the Continent are that we cannot oos
ia lor NN Hcn az, r@v"r in wealth. with the growth Of
wealth the standard Of living has been rising; ana:
consequently. there i larger con,unploh 1l Hc m's'
than there formerly. For instance France
large importer and practically 4 may be sail " al "ny
three European countries are large eNport's-
many go,d HS nyc @ Is a s thc 1nrd states have beaten
tho Continental nations I'm tho export trade In meat and
,ha,n 'h% r Is ,o ,puc4 Eccrrriy thce has tccn con-
siderable development of the trade In frozen mcas
declines - speculate to whether that trade T. dcs-
tined TO increase very lTGcsv lie Confines hi' re.
conclusion he arrives that the time IS not very far
distant when the home demand will he sufficient foe
qmcnv not very many will pass away before hs
British farmer IS relieved from the keen competition
with the rapid rate at which the American population,
ownf the & EGfnns DGn OF Z, the bsonS century nGw
+ abont sixty millions In very few years II VII
wears more II Will be twice always assuming
that no great disaster happcns. Bni not only IS thd
ishng rate. that population consumes more meat pee
head than tho population Of other country IN the
world Every wear. therefore. tho home demand viii
increase and In cry few years II VIII have so ln
creased as To need thc whole of the homo supply. In
deed tho older Eastern States now not onlv have
ceased 10 export. Int Themselves import from tho
West counted by years the period probably IL
not very distant when Major CragIcs views viii bS
realized It Is quite clear that II the population of
the United States confines 10 grow as rapidly a 10
has grown all through this century. II will affair such
numbers In a short time n Will sinice Tor me con-
sumntlon OF the whole Of the home supply but In
the meantime American competition Will 60 ON, and
II f. hut cold comfort TO the British farmer OF today
to he told thai his son need not fear American COM
petition II the farmer ~ today Is 10 held his own
he must brace himself for the struggle. Everybody
admits that our own soil Is capable OF raising all Tho
meat we ned for own consumption Vet, As seen
ahovr our home production has practically remained
stationary for twenty Granted all the advant-
ages possessed by the Americans there must surely be
some fault on part II with the cvcrgrowtn4
market at on vcry doors. with more and more ground
laid down grass and with the finest breeds OF cattle
I'm ihc world not only not heat our foreign
competitors but cannot even increase the supply